WEC 42: The Numbers Don’t Lie

The saying goes that “the numbers don’t lie.” If that’s the case, the World Extreme Cagefighting card on Aug. 9 at Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, NV should be one of the most entertaining of the year. Headlined by a title bout and filled with vicious strikers, menacing grapplers, and exciting clashes, WEC: Torres vs. Bowles will undoubtedly prove why the WEC is home to the best light weight fighters in the world.

As the MMA community gears up for the action-packed evening of fights on Aug. 9, let’s take a look at some of the key numbers behind WEC: Torres vs. Bowles. From knockout ratios to the amount of years spent training, each fighter has been assigned a number that correlates to their success inside the WEC cage.

2 – Languages spoken by featherweight Rafael Dias. Preparing for his upcoming fight with fellow Brazil Diego Nunes, the American Top Team product speaks both English and Portuguese. A jiu jitsu black belt, Dias trains with the likes of Thiago Alves and Mike Brown on a daily basis.

17 – The age at which 145-pound competitor Diego Nunes made his amateur Muay Thai debut in his native Brazil. Undefeated at 12-0 as a professional mixed martial artist, Nunes has clearly benefitted from the Muay Thai experience he developed nine years ago.

9 – Number of times bantamweight Kenji Osawa has forced his opponent to fight him to a decision. With 15 wins in his professional career, the 32-year-old, who faces Rani Yahya in August, hopes to use his plethora of cage experience to best his Brazilian opponent.

13 – Out of 14 career wins, Rani Yahya has recorded 13 submission victories. In April, Yahya made quick work of former bantamweight champion Eddie Wineland, submitting the 24-year-old in the first round.

2001 – The year in which former Marine Phil Cardella made his MMA debut. The Relson Gracie-trained Texan will fight feared knockout artist Ed Ratcliff in lightweight action at Hard Rock.

83 – Knockout percentage of lightweight Ed Ratcliff. Five of “9MM’s” six wins have come by way of knockout.

3 – Number of times lightweight Shane Roller earned All-American honors as a collegiate wrestler at Oklahoma State University. The Las Vegas resident battles Marcus Hicks on Aug. 9.

1 – Showing a knack for finishing fights, Dallas, TX product Marcus Hicks has only been to a decision once in his professional career.

4 – Number of times featherweight Cole Province earned a Division II collegiate wrestling championship while attending University of Central Oklahoma. The 28-year-old battles Brazilian Fredson Paixao next month.

4 – Number of Brazilian jiu jitsu world championships won by Fredson Paixao. If you think that’s impressive, take a look at the 9 national championships Paixao won in his native Brazil.

1984 – The year in which “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles” was conceived in comic book form. The martial arts-loving turtles later became a favorite television show of featherweight Jameel Massouh, who battles Leonard Garcia in August.

16 – Age at which Leonard Garcia began training in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. Garcia, who trains with Rashad Evans, Keith Jardine, and Donald Cerrone in Albuquerque, NM, hopes a win on Aug. 9 puts him back in the 145-pound title picture.

43 – Number of professional fights on the resume of bantamweight Jeff Curran. Curran battles Japanese star Takeya Mizugaki on the undercard of WEC: Torres vs. Bowles.

25 – Number of minutes Takeya Mizugaki fought bantamweight champion Miguel Angel Torres in their epic April clash. The 25-year-old hopes to earn another crack at Torres by besting Curran in Las Vegas.

95811 – The area code of Ultimate Fitness, the Sacramento, CA gym that lightweight contender Danny Castillo calls home. The once-beaten San Francisco native, who trains with fellow WEC stars Urijah Faber and Joseph Benavidez, takes on Ricardo Lamas in a fight that will push the winner one step closer to a shot at the 155-pound title.

1,151 – Approximate number of miles between Las Cruces, NM and Sacramento, CA. That is the distance bantamweight star Joseph Benavidez of Las Cruces traveled in order to train with Urijah Faber in Sacramento.

0 – The number of times 135-pound title challenger Brian Bowles has been defeated. He’ll look to stay unbeaten when he fights champion Miguel Angel Torres in the main event on Aug. 9.

Tickets for Torres vs. Bowles are on sale now and priced at $40, $55, $85, $100, $125, $175, and $225. Tickets may be purchased by calling Ticketmaster Charge-By-Phone at 1-800-745-3000 or by visiting the Hard Rock Box Office. Tickets also are available online through www.wec.tv or www.ticketmaster.com.

Torres vs. Bowles will be televised nationally live on VERSUS beginning at 9:00 p.m. ET/6:00 p.m. PT. All of the network’s live WEC events are presented in HD and Spanish language SAP where available. For more information and how to find VERSUS in your local viewing area, visit http://www.versus.com/findversus.